£140m later, a rundown palace rivals splendour of Versailles

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One of Italy’s most magnificent architectural treasures, the Royal Palace of Venaria in Turin, opens to the public today — 11 years after a €200 million (£140 million) refit began and 50 years after it narrowly escaped the wrecking ball. The vast palace with its formal gardens, most of it built in the 18th century, is only slightly smaller than the Palace of Versailles but is equally splendid and arguably of greater architectural interest.

In the 1950s, however, the Reggia di Venaria had declined to such a miserable state — decrepit buildings surrounded by “gardens” that had reverted to untended